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1996 Subaru Legacy Outback overheating

15 messages,  Last post on Oct 19, 2009 at 7:10 PM

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#6 of 15 99 Subaru Outback overheating 2.5 ltr by mike120a Aug 15, 2009 (9:44 pm)
Ok, A little history report. I bought this car about a month ago. The previous guy said he overheated the car and it was blowing white smoke. He said he put in the thermostat backwards(car didn't start up). I bought the car for a good price knowing I would need to replace head gaskets, etc. I replaced the head gaskets/shaved the heads, and even had a compression test on the heads done once they were off(very expensive, i recommend buying the tool and doing it yourself before taking engine apart). I put everything back together and made sure the thermostat was facing the right way etc.   The car started up great and sounded very good. I let it idle for awhile and it stayed cold for about 5 or more minutes(i was worried). I shut the car off and turned it back on, this time it showed the temperature was starting to get warm. I was relieved thinking that at least the temp sensor is working and i let the car run for awhile. The car's temp gauge was in the middle and it was fine. Later on i took the car on a test run, it was still blowing white smoke but stopped when i wasn't giving it any gas. The car ran like a dream, it was very smooth and nice. After a few minutes driving at higher speeds it started to warm up even more and got up near the H(hot) mark. It was close to that for about 10-15 seconds before i was able to pull over and shut the car off. I waited for about 15 minutes and started the car(since i only had a few blocks to get back home) and the car was running rough and missing. Now the check engine light came on(it didn't come on until after it got hot and i turned the car back on).   I ended up pushing it back home after an attempt to get it home but it just ran rough so i pulled back over. I let it sit for about 30-45 minutes before starting it to see if it was still idling rough, and it was.   I'm gonna check the thermostat soon and also see if the water pump has been leaking. Do u think that by overheating for that time period would call the head gaskets to blow? Also there wasn't any hot air blowing when i turned the heat on. The upper radiator hose was blazing hot and the lower radiator hose(on the thermostat) was cold.   Any Ideas?   Any help is appreciated.   Thanks in advance Replies to this message: xwesx (Aug 17, 2009 9:03 am)
#7 of 15 Re: 99 Subaru Outback overheating 2.5 ltr [mike120a] by xwesx Aug 17, 2009 (9:03 am)
Replying to: mike120a (Aug 15, 2009 9:44 pm) Sounds like a bad water pump to me; especially if you just replaced the thermostat. I had my water pump fail on my '96 Outback and it had identical symptoms, though the engine never ran rough and it did NOT blow white smoke. If you have white smoke, then there is coolant getting into your exhaust. I assume you flushed out the old engine oil, etc., when you did the head work? If so, you may have a cracked block that is allowing coolant seepage.   When you have it torn apart again, you might also flush the radiator to ensure that you have good flow through there. I doubt it is clogged, but you never know. Also, these engines can sometimes be problematic about coolant refills and get air pockets trapped in the system. I always put my car up on ramps to set the vehicle at an incline while refilling. Once the coolant is full in the radiator, I would repeatedly squeeze the upper radiator hose to force fluid movement; this would always give me more bubbles and allow more space for fluid.   Good luck to you.
#8 of 15 overheating by mike120a Aug 18, 2009 (3:20 pm)
Thanks, that helps alot. U know when i put the radiator fluid in i didn't loosen this valve thing it has near the top radiator hose, so i think i did get an air pocket in it(won't do that again). It has new oil in it too. I will take your advice and check that water pump. Thanks again for your comment. Just finished reading your comment in the other post( i posted in a new thread to make sure i got a response. ) I will see if i can delete it instead.
#9 of 15 overheating by mike120a Aug 22, 2009 (7:52 pm)
Thanks again for your advice. It is good now, lots of air inside the system but not now. Everything works good.   Woohoo, i don't have to do a head job again. Replies to this message: xwesx (Aug 23, 2009 10:40 pm)
#10 of 15 Re: overheating [mike120a] by xwesx Aug 23, 2009 (10:40 pm)
Replying to: mike120a (Aug 22, 2009 7:52 pm) That's great! I will have to remember that condition and not jump right to the water pump as the most likely source. I remember that one very well, though, due to the conditions under which mine failed (it was 2am on a Sunday morning and a little more than 20-degrees below zero F).
#11 of 15 96 Outback oil in antifreeze reservoir -overheating by ebony5 Oct 18, 2009 (2:28 pm)
As stated above also cool air coming out of the vents car has 108k -parked it and will have towed tomorrow. I have heard in the past that this is a sign of a blown head gasket-could it be anything else - if it is the head gasket is it worth repairing - I have taken good car of it -has new tires Replies to this message: xwesx (Oct 18, 2009 3:33 pm)
#12 of 15 Re: 96 Outback oil in antifreeze reservoir -overheating [ebony5] by xwesx Oct 18, 2009 (3:33 pm)
Replying to: ebony5 (Oct 18, 2009 2:28 pm) Cool air coming out of the vents.... could be thermostat, water pump, or an air pocket. If it is an air pocket, it is likely due to the head gasket condition (combustion blow-by forcing air into the coolant). You can tell, though, if you pull the radiator cap and let the car run, you can see bubbles being produced as the car runs.   With that mileage on the car and assuming everything else is in good shape, I would say that it is worth the repair if you are planning to keep it a while longer. If it is destined for a trade-in or sale any time soon, I would say no. The car is probably 14 years old, give or take a couple months, and it only has 108,000 miles. 7500 miles a year; how do you do it?!
#13 of 15 Thanks once again by ebony5 Oct 18, 2009 (7:22 pm)
Was wondering if you were still reading these postings-it has been a couple of years - I remember when you said good bye to your '96. Are you still in Alaska? More shall be revealed tomorrow. It is the oil in the coolant reservoir that has me concerned. If I remember correctly that is an indication of a head gasket situation. I only drive for a short while when I noticed the situation. I have had the same mechanic working on my car at Subaru for a number of years now and we have a nice relationship. The low milage is because I live in NYC and only use the car at night and on the weekends. But even so at 14 years even with being diligent parts wear out and get corroded. Replies to this message: xwesx (Oct 19, 2009 9:27 am)
#14 of 15 Re: Thanks once again [ebony5] by xwesx Oct 19, 2009 (9:27 am)
Replying to: ebony5 (Oct 18, 2009 7:22 pm) Yep; still in Alaska. We just recently purchased a '10 Forester and are really enjoying it.   Oil in the coolant is a sure sign of a head gasket failure, but that is not going to immediately translate to overheating. It depends on how/where the gasket failed as to how likely an overheat episode is to occur. Oil in the coolant is a a far better situation than coolant in the oil, but both must be addressed as soon as possible.
#15 of 15 Update by ebony5 Oct 19, 2009 (7:10 pm)
Yes the dreaded head gasket failure- am getting it repaired-did the numbers and seemed like the way to go-it was due to have a new timing chain and water pump, so having that done as well . From reading these posts over the years, I thought it was the head gasket. Good luck with the new Forrester

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